Vernon G. "Red" Pharis Jr.

Vernon G. "Red" Pharis Jr., 80, passed away on Wednesday, May 1, 2013. A prayer service will begin at 11 a.m. on Monday, May 6, 2013, at Branchburg Funeral Home, 910 US Highway 202 South, Branchburg, N.J. 08876, (908) 526-7638. Interment will follow in Neshanic Cemetery, Hillsborough, N.J. Viewing hours are Sunday, May 5, 2013, from 3 to 7 p.m. and Monday from 10:30 to 11 a.m. at the funeral home. www.BranchburgFuneralHome.com Red was born on Aug. 19, 1932, in Lexington, Ky., to the late Vernon G. Pharis Sr. and Ella Mae (King) Pharis. After moving from Kentucky, Red resided in Virginia, Mount Vernon, N.Y., and North Plainfield, N.J., before moving to Branchburg, N.J., in 1991. He also maintained a residence in Manahawkin, N.J. Red graduated from A.B. Davis High School, Mount Vernon, N.Y., in 1950. He served in the United States Navy on the USS Randolph from 1951 to March 28, 1955. He then attended Newark College of Engineering. He worked in the construction management business for over 40 years before retiring in 1995. He was a project manager for Wigton-Abbott Corporation before becoming president of Construction Methods, Inc. He then was vice president of The Henderson Corporation, where he was instrumental in creating a comprehensive approach to pharmaceutical construction projects. Red was a lifetime member of the Elks Lodge No. 2252, Watchung Hills, N.J., a member of the Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels, and a member of the American Legion Post 1000, Trenton, N.J. Red was an amazing storyteller. He loved to talk about growing up in Kentucky, meeting Secretariat, and his days in the Navy. His favorite times were spending summers at his New Jersey shore home with his kids, grandchildren, and good friends. Surviving are his wife of 61 years, Marie Fee Pharis; his five children, Donna Pennica of Bridgewater, N.J., Susan LaFemina and her husband, Ciro, of Readington, N.J., Valerie Bocchino and her husband, Albert, of Bethlehem Township, N.J., Carol Bieda and her husband, John, of Bridgewater and Steven Pharis and his wife, Jodi Indiveri Pharis, of Naples, Fla. He was lovingly known as "Pop-Pop" to his nine grandchildren, Jackie Pennica Chandler and her husband, Brett, Gregory and Kevin LaFemina, Kelly and Michael Bocchino, Scott and Mark Bieda, Liane and Steven James Pharis, and great-grandson, Bryson Chandler. He also leaves behind his Border Collie, Penny.